Factors Affecting Friction – A Necessary Evil

Friction is a necessary evil. There are various factors affecting friction.
Wait! Did I just mention friction? Ok, let’s start by defining what friction is, and then we will be moving forward by discussing the factors affecting friction.

The force between two sliding (or trying to slide) surfaces is known as friction. Friction is a resisting force. It resists the relative motion of solid surfaces fluid surfaces and objects sliding against each other. Friction tends to work in the opposite direction of the moving body.
For example, when you kick a ball, it slows down after some time, and eventually, it stops. This happens due to the frictional force applied by the floor in the opposite direction of the ball.

Types of friction

There are various types of friction listed below:-

• Fluid friction

A force of friction which occurs between the layers of a viscous fluid moving relative to each other is called fluid friction. Liquid contact happens between liquid layers that are moving comparatively with one another.

This inward protection from the stream is named viscosity. In regular terms, the viscosity of a liquid is portrayed as its “thickness”. In this way, water is “slim”, having a lower thickness, while nectar is “thick”, having a higher viscosity.

The less gooey the liquid, the more noteworthy its simplicity of disfigurement or development.

Every single genuine liquid (aside from superfluids) offers some protection from shearing and in this manner are gooey. For instructing and logical purposes it is useful to utilize the idea of an inviscid liquid or a perfect liquid that offers no protection from shearing as isn’t thick.

• Skin friction

A force of friction and a component of drag skin friction is a type of friction that resists the motion of a fluid across the surface of a body.

Skin Friction emerges from the collaboration between the liquid and the skin of the body and is legitimately identified with the territory of the outside of the body that is in contact with the liquid.

Skin friction follows the drag condition and ascends with the square of the speed.

Skin friction is brought about by thick drag in the limit layer around the item. There are two different ways to diminish skin friction: the first is to shape the moving body with the goal that a smooth stream is conceivable, similar to an airfoil.

The subsequent strategy is to diminish the length and cross-segment of the moving article as much as is practicable.

• Dry friction

A force of friction that opposite the relative motion between two solid surfaces in contact. Dry friction can be caused by the interaction of surface feature called Asperities.

Dry Friction opposes the relative horizontal movement of two strong surfaces in contact. The two systems of dry contact are ‘static grating’ (“stiction”) between stationary surfaces and active grating (here and there called sliding rubbing or dynamic erosion) between moving surfaces.

Dry friction can be for the classified into two types:-
• Static friction (between moving surfaces)

• Kinetic friction (between stationery surfaces)

• Lubricated friction

A force of friction in which two solid surfaces are separated by a lubricant is called lubricated friction.

Lubricated Friction is an instance of liquid friction where a liquid isolates two strong surfaces. Oil is a method utilized to decrease the wear of one of the two surfaces in nearness moving comparatively with each another by intervening a substance called an oil between the surfaces.

Much of the time the applied burden is conveyed by pressure produced inside the liquid because of the frictional gooey protection from the movement of the greasing up liquid between the surfaces.

Satisfactory oil permits the smooth consistent activity of gear, with just gentle wear, and without over the top burdens or seizures at orientation.

At the point when grease separates, metal or different segments can rub damagingly over one another, causing heat and potentially harm or disappointment.

• Internal friction

A force of friction which resists the motion between solid material when they undergo formation is called Internal Friction.

Internal Friction is the power opposing movement between the components making up a strong material while it experiences disfigurement.

Plastic twisting in solids is an irreversible change in the interior sub-atomic structure of an item. This change might be expected to either (or both) an applied power or an adjustment in temperature.

The difference in an article’s shape is called strain. The power causing it is called pressure.
Flexible distortion in solids is a reversible change in the interior atomic structure of an article.

Stress doesn’t cause perpetual change. As twisting happens, interior powers restrict the applied power.

On the off chance that the applied pressure isn’t too huge these restricting powers may oppose the applied power, permitting the article to accept another harmony state and to come back to its unique shape when the power is evacuated. This is known as versatile twisting or flexibility.

Properties of Friction

Friction is a part of the science of Tribology. Friction is a non-conservative force and work done against friction is dependent on the path.

In friction, some kinetic energy is always transformed into thermal energy so the mechanical energy is not conserved.

Friction isn’t a fundamental force itself. Friction between two blocks of wood causes fire.

Factors affecting Friction

Friction relies halfway upon the perfection of the reaching surfaces, a more noteworthy power being expected to move two surfaces past each other if they are harsh than if they are smooth.

Be that as it may, friction diminishes with perfection just to a certain extent; contact increments between two amazingly smooth surfaces due to expanded appealing electrostatic powers between their particles.

Friction doesn’t rely upon the measure of the surface zone in contact between the moving bodies or (inside specific cutoff points) on the general speed of the bodies.

It does, in any case, rely upon the extent of the powers holding the bodies together. At the point when a body is moving over a flat surface, it pushes down against the surface with a power equivalent to its weight, i.e., to the draw of gravity upon it; an expansion in the heaviness of the body causes an increment in the measure of opposition offered to the overall movement of the surfaces in contact.

There are a number of factors affecting friction. Some of them are mentioned below:-

1. Nature of the surfaces in contact like hard or smooth.

Make a slanted plane utilizing cardboard upheld with blocks. Imprint a point A on any piece of that cardboard. Let a pencil cell descend through this point.

Presently, spread a bit of fabric on the cardboard and rehash a similar action. After this, you will see that the pencil cell secured bigger separation when proceeded onward cardboard when contrasted with a bit of material.

2. How hard the two surfaces are packed together.

If we are pushing a monstrous box which is very still. There will be no uncertainty all the more interlocking of the sub-atomic substances between two surfaces and hence, we would apply more static grating to move that crate. Presently, if we would attempt to move a lightbox, there will be less interlocking of the atoms between two surfaces, and consequently, we would apply less static rubbing to move that container.

Sitting, walking, standing, writing, dancing, moving, almost everything involves Friction. Therefore, it isn’t wrong to say Friction Is a necessary evil.

Also read:-

Refraction – Facts, Types, Examples, and Applications